Son of AFL great Nathan Buckley seriously injured in Go Karting accident
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EXCLUSIVE: Soccer legend Nathan Buckley’s son seriously injured in high-speed go-kart accident leaves him with ‘lacerated kidney and liver’ and broken clavicle
- Jett Buckley crashed his high speed kart during a practice session
- He is the son of the great and former AFL champion Collingwood, Nathan Buckley.
- Jett’s brake line snapped forcing his kart off the track at breakneck speeds.
- He was thrown out of his kart like a rag doll and thrown off an embankment.
- Jett’s kart landed on top of him as his startled teammates rushed to his aid.
- He remains in the hospital and further scans are required on his battered body.
The son of former AFL great Nathan Buckley has narrowly avoided death in a serious go-kart accident during a high-speed practice session.
Jett Buckley, who is the spitting image of his father during his heyday with Collingwood, had been guiding his kart around an outback track in Melbourne when his kart’s brake line broke.
The 15-year-old was thrown from the kart down an embankment and landed on the track with the kart on top of him.
Paramedics and firefighters treat Jett Buckley after he was involved in a nasty accident during practice in Melbourne.
Jett Buckley is treated by paramedics after crashing his kart in Melbourne
Jett and his famous father Nathan Buckley during an earlier event
Posting on Instagram on Wednesday, Jett confirmed that he was lucky to be alive.
I have lacerated my kidney and liver. I also broke my clavicle (clavicle)’, he told his followers.
“My elbow and forearm have yet to be determined, pending scans.”
Jett remains at the Royal Children’s Hospital, where he is expected to remain for the next few days.
Heartbreaking photos posted on Instagram show the shocking moments immediately after the accident.
Firefighters and paramedics can be seen treating Buckley on the track, with his wrecked kart in the foreground.
Jett is comforted by his mother Tania on the way to the hospital
Staff at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne treat the injured runner
Jett’s clavicle was smashed to pieces in the shocking crash
Other images show Jett’s mother Tania, who split from his father Nathan in December 2020, comforting her son in the back of an ambulance.
Jett’s broken clavicle can be seen as he lay motionless on a gurney on the way to the hospital.
X-rays show his left clavicle in pieces, and the teen faces surgery to have steel plates inserted into the tip of his clavicle in an effort to heal the shattered bone.
Jett appeared to be practicing to compete in an endurance event scheduled for this weekend.
He thanked those who rushed to his assistance, paying special tribute to the paramedics who treated him at the scene.
“Thank you to ambulance drivers Ben and Laine and everyone else on the scene,” he wrote on Instagram.
‘Thank you to all the nurses and doctors at the Royal Children’s Hospital.’
Jett Buckley (right) is pictured with his karting coach, Brad Jenner.
Jett Buckley (pictured) was injured in a racing accident and is recovering in hospital
Former Magpies coach Nathan Buckley (center) with his sons Jett (right) and Ayce (left)
Jett said he would spend “a few days” in the hospital to “rest completely.”
The young racer has enjoyed repeated success on the track behind the wheel of an Italian-built kart valued at close to $7,000.
Karting has long been considered the fastest way to get behind the wheel of Formula 1 vehicles.
Unlike the kind of go-karts you rent from local karting resorts, professional go-karts can reach speeds of over 100 km/h.
Jett had previously discussed injuries he had sustained behind the wheel of a go-kart.
“With a bloody nose and a tangle at the end of the day, it didn’t go too bad,” Jett wrote after a race at Rochester a few months ago.
Jett is trained by champion karting Brad Jenner, who holds multiple Australian championships.
Jett’s famous father has not publicly referred to his son’s accident.
In October, Nathan Buckley flaunted his new girlfriend in front of his former partner at the Justin Cassin X Redken show at Melbourne Fashion Week.
The 50-year-old former AFL player turned up to the event with another brunette beauty on his arm as he sat a few feet from his ex Alex Pike.
Nathan and Alex began dating in early 2021 in the months following his split from ex-wife Tania Minnici after 18 years.
Regarded as one of the greatest AFL footballers of all time, Nathan played 280 games before going on to coach his beloved Collingwood Football Club.
Now he’s settled back into media roles since leaving the Magpies last year.